In known balers, and particularly to balers which wind large bales and means applied to the bales for retaining same intact without using wire, twine or plastic sheet the formed bales are kept intact by winding twine, cord of the like around their outer peripheries. The rope or wire, particularly iron wire, can be removed only with difficutly and may get mixed up with the crop and so get into the cattle's stomach so that difficulties may arise in the animal's body. Moreover, binding the bales in the known balers is time consuming, and wastes time which could otherwise be used for forming bales. Instead, travel of the baler across the field has to be interrupted during the binding operation.